Leadership

For me, one of the most valuable outcomes of taking this course was that it encouraged me to get to know myself and gave me the tools to develop on both a personal and professional level. It also provided the platform for me to examine the multifaceted roles and responsibilities of leadership and understand the many traits that make a leader not only a leader but also a great leader. When I think of highly effective leaders I think of individuals who possesses a wide array of attributes. Those attributes include intelligence, being an effective communicator, someone with vision, passion and charisma. It has been nine weeks since I submitted my paper on charisma and at that time I began to consciously work on developing a plan to strengthen my charismatic traits, those traits that come naturally to me as well as those that do not. I began by writing down my daily objectives. In the early days my prime goal was to remember peoples names, something I used to be notoriously poor at. I have made great strides in developing this skill and have really experienced the changes first hand. People appear to have more confidence in me, they are certainly more at ease around me and seem to be naturally drawn to me. I have discovered my genuine interest in a wide variety of people that wasn’t there before this class and I feel that by making a conscious decision to work on these skills I have definitely enhanced my social network. I also began watching individuals that I believe exude charisma and made notes on what I found captivating and began to slowly emulate some of those characteristics and behaviors. Some behaviors felt authentic and I felt at ease from the start some I modified to feel more natural to me. It’s a work in progress and one that I am reaping rewards from already. I have been told that I am now a more open and candid communicator and am enjoying building and developing relationships with those around me particularly those that prior to this class would have not previously been in my network. I very much enjoyed taking the self-assessments one my favorites being “A self-portrait of my communication effectiveness” After taking the assessment I believed I had a fear of addressing large groups and I enrolled myself in a free public speaking class. What I discovered was although I was nervous I was actually relatively comfortable speaking in front of a group and am looking forward to continuing the class and developing this skill, as I believe it will be an invaluable tool as I grow and learn. Another self-assessment I found valuable was “my conflict resolution style” I discovered that looking back over the past few years I realize I viewed conflict as an either or outcome and often felt undermined when I did not get my desired results. This often resulted in feelings of animosity and negativity towards my friends and family. Having matured and taking a more collaborative approach to listening and discussing issues I have made great strides and I see the results within my personal network with a stronger bonds and greater levels of mutual respect. I was pleased that the assessment confirmed that I try to focus on a collaborative approach to conflict resolution. I showed this to my close friends and family to see if they agreed and the general consensus was that while yes I had moved away from a combattative approach to a more collaborative style I still needed to pay more attention to the feelings of others as I can be perceived as abrupt especially in competitive situations. Another important realization for me is that not all conflict is negative; in fact vibrant respectful debate can have very creative outcomes. One of the more challenging aspects of the course for me, and growth area, was the team assignment. It was all the more challenging given we all came from very different backgrounds and in some cases cultures. In addition we all worked remotely at different hours via email to discuss topics and arrive at a consensus for our papers. We had to learn not only to communicate and collaborate effectively but also to work with a team member that was not necessarily always responsive to the teams goals and objectives. We addressed this by assigning specific roles and responsibilities and by assigning informal team leaders for each case study. This is where a lot of theory came into practice, as the team leader role required being able to handle difficult situations, active listening, feedback, conflict resolution, problem solving and coaching. The key in my opionion is being able to communicate all these facets fairly and effectively. Another aspect of the course that I found highly relevant was the topic of ethics. Ethical leadership in my opinion requires that leaders are held responsible and accountable for their behaviors and actions. Demonstrating ethical behavior in ones private life as well as professional life is inextricably linked to building solid relationships and is the foundation for personal development. I currently run a small business and do not have to lead anyone other than myself. If I choose to continue to work for myself and expand or join a company I would be a participative team member or leader as in my experience and from my studies I think it is the most effiective way of getting tasks done. I found this approach particularly enlightening in the case study on Google. I fully realize however that different styles are sometimes needed depending on the situation. In summary I thoroughly enjoyed this class as it gave me an in-depth look into the ever-changing complexities that leaders face on a daily basis. It also gave me an excellent overview in to the skill sets required to grow into a leader and has caused me to really think about and evaluate my developmental plan both academically and personally as I make strides in becoming the best leader and the best person that I can be. Equally as importantly it has taught me not to avoid difficult situations like public speaking or challenging team members but to deal with the situations directly and fairly. As a result I feel more self-aware, focused and in control. Do I think I have a bright future as a leader, yes that said I realize it’s a journey. My personal goal is to develop into a highly efficacious leader and with knowledge of myself, the ability to effectively communicate, share goals and visions and with consistency I feel I am on the right track. It won’t be easy and it won’t be quick but I believe it is worth pursing with a passion.